The actor on his journey from IIT to sketch comedies to riding the digital wave
Kunal Guha (MUMBAI MIRROR; July 5, 2020)

When Jitendra Kumar essayed a gay character in Shubh Mangal Zyada Saavdhan earlier this year, many found the actor’s choice rather bold. But the 29-year-old, who shot to fame with digital sketch comedies and series such as Pitchers, Bachelors, Kota Factory and Cheesecake, felt the film qualified as “important content”.

“I hope such stories, and the intention with which they were made, reach a larger audience,” says Kumar, who admits that his two lockdown releases, Panchayat and Chaman Bahaar, were both banking on the Ayushmann-starrer to elevate him to a household name despite his big screen debut with Gone Kesh last year. “When you’re starting out, you sometimes can’t refuse work because you have to survive. But I’ve learnt that if you focus, and are patient, you can find recognition and also get the roles that you believe in.” Considering the actor has recently become a digital sensation, keeping at it, perhaps, pays handsomely.

During the Coronavirus lockdown, Kumar, unlike many, hasn’t rekindled his culinary passion, but has been just “cooking for survival”. “I am very lazy, so I knead aata for two or three days at a go, and can make two rotis in one minute,” says the actor, who takes pride in whipping up dal tadka, egg curry, aloo shimla mirch and bhindi. Kumar credits his survival skills to his days in the NCC camps he attended in school, where he also learnt to cook on an open fire pit.

Surprisingly, Kumar’s formative years in Rajasthan’s Khairthal were singularly insular and his access to the world of entertainment was largely restricted to the small screen. “My childhood was all about cricket, cooking and studies. We usually watched Doordarshan, but during summer breaks, we would have a dish installed, and watch whatever played on the cable channels,” he says. “Back then, I never thought that I would ever become an actor or even visit Mumbai.”

A civil engineer from IIT Kharagpur, Kumar shares that he was initially drawn to acting while participating in college plays. “In IIT, we’re told to keep up with extracurriculars, so I took to the stage.” It is here that Kumar also met his college senior Biswapati Sarkar — someone who he would later collaborate with — who went from helming college plays to writing sketches for TVF, a digital content outfit, which began producing content for YouTube in the early days of web streaming in India.

Kumar remembers diving into the digital scene just after college, in 2012, spreading himself thin by straddling acting, numerous production jobs and assisting gigs. “Initially, I was unsure if this was my calling, so I gave it up in three months and took up a job with a construction company in Bangalore.” But nine months on, Kumar knew that he wasn’t cut out for civil engineering either. This is when one of his older sketches Munna Jazbaati dropped online and was received well... just enough to nudge him to face the camera again.

It helped that apart from numerous digital skits, he also bagged the show Change Aayega, Hum Laayenge (Bindaas), which was also sufficient to convince his parents of his career choice. “When they saw me on TV, they were assured of my skills,” he says. “Since my father is also a civil engineer, he understood that if I wasn’t interested in it, I wouldn’t do a good job.”

That Kumar joined the digital wave just before it became a rage also helped him get a firm foothold in the medium. “I literally saw digital content grow. And when Permanent Roommates became a hit, it changed the rules of the game and, in a way, helped establish the burgeoning industry.” The IIT-ian only featured in one episode of the show, but was convinced of its potential and reach by the overwhelming response the show garnered.

Today, Kumar feels blessed for having shared the screen with masters of the craft such as Raghubir Yadav and Gajraj Rao and feels that he’s picked up a lot from closely following their process. “When you see such actors approach a certain character through their iterations with writers and filmmakers, you learn about the different ways of internalising a character,” says the actor, who also credits acting workshops for sharpening his craft. “I am yet to develop the instinct of an actor, but that will come with time too, I hope.”

Kavita Awaasthi (HINDUSTAN TIMES; June 25, 2020)

After starring in the feature film Shubh Mangal Zyada Saavdhan (SMZS) that released in February, his web show, Panchayat, was well received, too, and the current positive response for his digital film Chaman Bahaar — actor Jitendra Kumar is no doubt on a roll. He says all of these were interesting projects and a blessing. “I don’t have a strategy and I make organic choices. I became an actor to act, so I try to pick the best from what is offered. The idea is to do different and interesting stories, which is happening. The credit goes to the audiences as they are enjoying and consuming different stories, which encourages us to make them,” says the actor, adding, “When people reacted to SMZS, I realised how important the film was to so many people which I didn’t know while shooting, as I was busy focusing on my craft. Films have a wide reach with a major chunk of family audience, while web shows are consumed more by people between the ages of 17 to 35.”

Kumar admits that there are certain risks “when one is trying to attempt different stories” but thankfully many OTT platforms are backing good content. “Now is the time to create content that one hasn’t seen before or that was maybe thought of as too different. A number of writers and directors are working in that direction, as many producers do support such ideas,” he says.

Like many in the industry, Kumar, too, has been affected by Sushant Singh Rajput’s demise. He feels, “Mental stress is in every industry. We have to work towards removing stigma around mental health. I feel, the support of family and friends is crucial in life and not just when you have anxiety or depression. One should share happiness and sadness with family and close friends. Before the lockdown, we were all running after fame, money and career and to prove ourselves in society. And while the lockdown has been tough on everyone, we also learnt how to be good to ourselves and appreciate our families and slow down a bit.”

With the Coronavirus pandemic, the actor admits the situation is worrisome. “We are all in this together and have to win over the outbreak collectively. We all want to go out there and work. I have been working on ideas and projects with people and will be ready to start soon, once things get better. But no one can say for sure how life will be post the lockdown,” he wonders.